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Four Forces Driving Contemporary Culture Deeper Into The Organization

This article is by Rob Fields, an award-winning marketer who’s passionate about helping companies solve the disconnect between their brands, theirbusiness and marketing objectives, and contemporary culture, particularly the ways that companies can better leverage culture to build their brands. He is currently director of content at the Brand Activation Association. Follow him on TwitterTwitter @robfields.

Companies use to be able to create their own oases. Once inside the focus was strictly on the company’s business. Developments in the outside world not directly related to the company were deemed unimportant. In a less connected age, this was an acceptable way to proceed

But these days, no company is an island. In fact, I’ve already argued that understanding contemporary culture is a competitive advantage. What you’re looking for are ways that developments such as new products, services and new expressions of culture are changing attitudes, needs, preferences and behaviors. For example, how will meal replacements like Soylent change notions about mealtime, and what are the implications for the QSR and grocery businesses?

Contemporary culture is growing in importance to companies precisely because it’s increasingly making its way past the walls that have separated the corporation from the outside world. Here are four forces that are driving that change.

Contemporary culture is riding into the corporation on the back of social media and all the data it throws off. What people are sharing, reacting to, and commenting on is indicative of what’s meaningful to them. These signals require interpretation. But there’s no way to create actionable context without an understanding of the various rituals, norms, language and systems of belief at play.

It’s only with a firm grasp on culture can we begin to make sense of the Twitter retweets, Facebook shares, LinkedInLinkedIn likes or +1′s on Google+. It’s culture that helps us understand the hopes, fears, aspirations, anxieties and other underlying emotional drivers of human interaction. And it’s social media that’s given culture a beachhead inside the corporation.

2. The Human Business Movement

Smart companies are changing the way they deal with their employees, customers and partners. The human business movement, as it’s called, is growing because of a simple idea: People relate to people, not soulless corporations. It is an effort to get companies to communicate in a simple, straightforward manner; be empathetic; and create workplace optimism. A few of the proponents of this movement include PureMatter’s Bryan Kramer; social business visionary Nilofer Merchant; and influential business expert Ted Coine, who notes, “This isn’t a ‘people first, profits second’ movement, but a ‘profits as a direct result of putting people first’ movement.”

When employees are able to bring their full selves to work–not just the parts that are good at managing and executing company business—they’re inevitably bringing outside culture in via their individuality, their personality, their interests and their meaning matrices. As a result, the company is better connected to the world.

(Photo credit: Lars Plougmann)

3. The Purpose Economy

The Great Recession caused many people to stop and answer this question: “What matters most to me?” As a result, we’ve seen the rise of purpose-driven companies, entities that focus on solving some of society’s most intractable problems poverty, literacy, clean water access, etc. Standing for something of consequence reflects a desire for greater meaning, both in terms of the brands people support and the types of companies they work for. Consumers are also keenly interested in companies that bring value to their lives and to society at large. Havas Media’s 2013 Meaningful Brands index, an ongoing ranking of companies that do just that highlighted the fact that its 134,000 participants in 23 countries wouldn’t care if a full 70% of brands disappeared. Because they’re ultimately meaningless.

Smart companies, such as household products manufacturer Method, funding platform Indiegogo, and media company Participant Media, to name only a few, are seeing higher profits as a result of clarity on their purpose. That’s resonating throughout the value chain with employees, customers and fans.

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